MAYBE it's not what you do, nor even so much the way that you do it, but when. Ask St Kilda, which kicked eight goals in the final quarter against the Brisbane Lions yesterday — six in the last 12 minutes — all too little and much too late to spare it humiliation.
At halfway through that final term, however, the Lions' lead was out to 75 points. Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw had six goals each, while the home side's key ball winners Simon Black and Jed Adcock had run amok. The damage was long since done.
The Saints, as Tim Lane pointed out in this paper on the weekend, are a long way short of their own pre-season press. Apart from Lenny Hayes, Robert Harvey and Luke Ball yesterday, they simply don't work hard enough, for each other or even themselves.
Justin Koschitzke kicked four goals, while Shane Birss and Leigh Montagna were good in bursts. The rest were poor, Nick Riewoldt in particular horribly out of sorts and Stephen Milne, in his 150th game, unsighted until late. But he wasn't the only one.
The Lions were out of the blocks early — Rhan Hooper and Anthony Corrie had the first three goals before you could say "Indigenous Round" — and although the first quarter then deteriorated into an error-strewn mess, their superiority had been established.
Koschitzke was involved in both of St Kilda's first-quarter goals, the first from a misdirected Josh Drummond pass, then setting up Brendan Goddard while trapped in the forward pocket.
Otherwise, the Saints looked lost up forward.
Drummond ran loose to pick up a lazy 12 possessions in the same period, giving the Lions tremendous drive from half-back. Mitch Clark was another to step up, getting the Lions moving with a mongrel punt that bounced through early in the second term.
Five goals to one followed for the Lions, and when Bradshaw marked in the goal square after the best transfer of the game — a clearance from defence by Mitch Clark that sent Joel Patfull bouncing his way unhindered down the wing — a blowout was on the cards.
The Lions took a 40-point lead into the half-time break, and put the result beyond dispute in the third thanks mainly to Brown, who detonated to kick four for the quarter after a sluggish first half.
Bradshaw kicked two more, both from powerful contested marks — not that his direct opponents were receiving much help from their teammates. You had to sympathise with a frustrated Max Hudghton, who wasted no time in letting his displeasure be known.
The Saints were undisciplined, too, giving away three 50-metre penalties in front of goal — not from any indiscretions on the interchange bench, either — but from stepping over the mark or interfering with the player on it.
Credit to the Lions, however, who were as tough in the clinches as ever — the tackle count was 58-33 — and ran hard all match. Their running depth is highly underrated. While Black, Adcock and Luke Power were as industrious as always, Joel Macdonald, Justin Sherman and Tim Notting all made significant contributions.
They would have been disappointed to let St Kilda win back some scoreboard respectability — most of the Saints' junk-time goals came from quick takeaways from the centre as Hayes, Leigh Montagna and Harvey dominated.
That would have been of little consolation to St Kilda's long-suffering fans, though, who must be wondering when their premiership window will open again.
ST KILDA 2.4 3.6 6.8 14.11 (95)
GOALS: Brisbane Lions: Bradshaw 6, Brown 6, Hooper 2, Black, Brennan, Clark, Corrie, Harding, Power, Roe. St Kilda: Koschitzke 4, Birss 2, Dal Santo 2, Milne 2, Fisher, Goddard, Montagna, Riewoldt.
BEST: Brisbane Lions: Black, Brown, Bradshaw, Adcock, Drummond, Clark. St Kilda: Hayes, Harvey, Ball, Koschitzke.
UMPIRES: McLaren, Chamberlain, Head.
CROWD: 27,566 at Gabba.
THE UPSHOT
Both sides went into the match at four wins and four losses,
the Lions at eighth on the ladder and St Kilda ninth. Yet the
difference between the two teams was vast, the Lions harder,
tougher and more prepared to work for each other.
TALKING POINT
The Saints. The team touted by so many as a serious
premiership contenders have been revealed, again, as the AFL's
great pretenders. Coach Ross Lyon's post-match admission that some
of his players were mentally and physically weak will set tongues
wagging.
HOT AND COLD
The Lions' key forwards Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw
were the perfect key forward combination yesterday with six goals
apiece, but Nick Riewoldt was sadly out of touch for the Saints,
looking especially bereft of confidence in his kicking for
goal.
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